The Longhua Temple is Shanghai’s largest and most active temple. Built in 345AD, the temple is considered to be an excellent example of Southern Song architecture.

The smell of incense hangs in the air and the grounds are full of Buddhist images. The Sakyamuni Buddha in the Bodhisattva form and the Maitreya Buddha incarnation grace the temple’s halls. On New Year’s Eve, the Longhua temple rings its bronze bell 108 times to expunge the 108 worries of Buddhist thought.